SkyTrain's Two Forgotten Future Ghost Stations

[SFUVancouver]

That was a very nice and informative reply letter. Thanks for sharing it.

[invisibleairwaves]

Woodlands Station would be nice, if only because it would make entering the tunnel a lot easier on the eardrums.

[Millennium2002]

I wonder... is it possible to build a Trout Lake station? Looks from Google Maps Street View can be deceiving, but the gradient doesn't seem to be very steep and there isn't a huge curvature.

[SpikePhanta]

Originally Posted by allan_kuan

I wonder... is it possible to build a Trout Lake station? Looks from Google Maps Street View can be deceiving, but the gradient doesn't seem to be very steep and there isn't a huge curvature.

The walk from nanaimo isnt that long to trout lake, so i dnt think it would be needed

[officedweller]

When the M-Line was being designed, a "future station" was considered for Nanaimo, but it was deleted (i.e. no provision for a future station) because Nanaimo Station on the Expo Line is closeby, as is Broadway & Commercial.

[SpikePhanta]

Speaking about skytrain stations, in your opinions which stations do you think is very underused?

I would say patterson, royaloak on the expo line.

[aberdeen5698]

Originally Posted by SpikePhanta

Speaking about skytrain stations, in your opinions which stations do you think is very underused?

I'd put my money on Millenium Line's Lake City Way as being THE most underused station.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by aberdeen5698

I'd put my money on Millenium Line's Lake City Way as being THE most underused station.

That was the only station not opened with the main M-Line right? Never should have been built it appears.

[invisibleairwaves]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

That was the only station not opened with the main M-Line right? Never should have been built it appears.

VCC-Clark also opened after the rest of the line, and it isn't exactly bursting at the seams either (although it gets a fair amount of traffic from the #84).

Most of the M-Line stations in Burnaby seem pretty underused, with the exceptions of Brentwood, Lougheed, and (sometimes) Production Way-University. Holdom and Gilmore will probably see a lot more use as the Brentwood area grows though.

On the Expo Line, if the predictions about Metrotown and Edmonds growing towards each other are true, Royal Oak will be well-placed. Patterson used to be somewhat busy at rush hour with the #125 BCIT bus, but Translink mysteriously and frustratingly killed that route with little warning this year. I've been meaning to send them an email about that; does anyone know what the reason was? Neither the 130 nor Metrotown Station can handle the demand.

[Whalleyboy]

Originally Posted by SpikePhanta

Speaking about skytrain stations, in your opinions which stations do you think is very underused?

I would say patterson, royaloak on the expo line.

gateway
which is strange given the towers around it

[Millennium2002]

Originally Posted by SpikePhanta

The walk from nanaimo isnt that long to trout lake, so i dnt think it would be needed

I actually think the length is still substantial to warrant an infill station at Trout Lake much like the proposed Boundary station. A station would also make it easier for people to get to the local community centre.

Originally Posted by invisibleairwaves

Patterson used to be somewhat busy at rush hour with the #125 BCIT bus, but Translink mysteriously and frustratingly killed that route with little warning this year.

That's a surprise. I'm wondering if it became a victim of the recent efficiency movement at TransLink.

As for underused stations, they seem to have been designed more for the "build it and they will come" scenario. Unfortunately that hasn't exactly taken off due to a variety of problems including community opposition, lack of affordability, lack of profit, lack of community amenities, fluctuating and unstable housing market, etc.

[SpikePhanta]

Originally Posted by invisibleairwaves

VCC-Clark also opened after the rest of the line, and it isn't exactly bursting at the seams either (although it gets a fair amount of traffic from the #84).

Most of the M-Line stations in Burnaby seem pretty underused, with the exceptions of Brentwood, Lougheed, and (sometimes) Production Way-University. Holdom and Gilmore will probably see a lot more use as the Brentwood area grows though.

On the Expo Line, if the predictions about Metrotown and Edmonds growing towards each other are true, Royal Oak will be well-placed. Patterson used to be somewhat busy at rush hour with the #125 BCIT bus, but Translink mysteriously and frustratingly killed that route with little warning this year. I've been meaning to send them an email about that; does anyone know what the reason was? Neither the 130 nor Metrotown Station can handle the demand.

I'm pretty sure they placed a bus that runs from/to patterson down willingdon.

I do see Royal Oak as potential being busy in maybe the next 20 years when all those warehouses going to get redevelop along with kingsway.
But then again that's only if they dont built those more townhouses like those south of the line, I dont like how townhouses dont make the area more vibrant and bustling.

And to the above post.
I don't see any problems walking to Trout Lake as it's quite a nice walk, and most of the people who go to trout lake to enjoy the nature.

[nname]

Originally Posted by invisibleairwaves

On the Expo Line, if the predictions about Metrotown and Edmonds growing towards each other are true, Royal Oak will be well-placed. Patterson used to be somewhat busy at rush hour with the #125 BCIT bus, but Translink mysteriously and frustratingly killed that route with little warning this year. I've been meaning to send them an email about that; does anyone know what the reason was? Neither the 130 nor Metrotown Station can handle the demand.

#125 only run Sept-April

[invisibleairwaves]

Really? I thought it ran later than that last year. The 130 is still a total mess.

I'd like to see a real express route from either Metrotown or Patterson that only stops at Sanderson, Goard, Ganada Way, and Brentwood and then comes back. The 125 was nice because it was a little less busy than the 130, and used articulated buses sometimes, but it made all the stops between Patterson and BCIT, and the one-way service probably hurt the cost-recovery quite a bit.

My college is moving to a new place right next to Renfrew Station next month, so I guess I won't have to worry about it anymore...still sucks for the BCIT people though.


I'm also a little surprised by Gateway's lack of use. Maybe if that whole office complex gets built... *knock on wood*

[red-paladin]

Originally Posted by allan_kuan

I actually think the length is still substantial to warrant an infill station at Trout Lake much like the proposed Boundary station. A station would also make it easier for people to get to the local community centre.

The letter I posted above was pretty clear that only Clark and Boundary are suitable for potential stations on the Expo line.

[Distill3d]

Originally Posted by red-paladin

The letter I posted above was pretty clear that only Clark and Boundary are suitable for potential stations on the Expo line.

Both would seem rather pointless to be honest. Clark is close enough to Commercial. Plus, with the M Line terminus at VCC Clark, is it really necessary?

Boundary is close enough to Joyce and Patterson that it would seem to be well serviced. I mean really, unless the population in that area doubled, there's no real need for a station at Boundary.

I would love to see a Woodlands station be built along the M Line.

[huenthar]

For that 'Clark' station, could it not be built nearer Great Northern Way campus, if needed for future developments over the rail yards? The tracks there are straight and flat. This would be instead of a 'Finning' station on the Broadway line, so that line could instead serve Broadway/Fraser.

[twoNeurons]

I wonder if a station at Clark could be close enough to provide a connector to VCC/Clark Station. Many cities run stations parallel to each other. This would take the load off of Commercial Drive/Broadway station... which will only get busier should the M-Line continue west to meet the Broadway corridor and the Canada Line.

[DKaz]

Originally Posted by nname

#125 only run Sept-April

Someone forgot to tell Translink that BCIT's school year runs until the end of May.

[jsbertram]

There already is a 'Clark Dr' station on the Millennium line which is the current western terminal at Vancouver Community College (VCC station) but this will become just another Millennium line station when the Millennium line is built westwards past Great Northern Way Campus (with a station there), turns south into tunnel under Prince Edward St, and westwards again tunnelling under 10th Ave (Kingsgate mall station) all the way to UBC.

The problem with a Clark Dr station on the Expo line is that the guideways are built quite high to get over Clark Dr and the railway tracks & shunting yards, whereas the Millennium line guideway for VCC station is under Clark Dr. The Expo guideway curves north-west from the Clark / Grandview Cut to run east and north of Home Depot parking lot and into the centre median on Terminal Avenue.

Building an Expo line Clark Dr station to connect to VCC station is duplicating the transit hub that already exists only one station east (Broadway @ Commercial), only this proposed dual-station wouldn't have the advantage of Broadway local and B-line buses stopping there too.

When the Millennium line is built at least as far as Arbutus, there won't be any transfers from SkyTrain to/from B-Line at Broadway @ Commercial because the UBC B-line will be shortened to run only between Arbutus and UBC. The new Millennium line extension from Arbutus to VCC (and the new eastern Evergreen line from Lougheed to Douglas College) will dramatically shift transit usage across the north side of Vancouver and Burnaby. Broadway @ Commercial will remain a busy transfer point, with the majority of the traffic being Skytrain-to-Skytrain, and some transfers will continue to be Skytrain-to- Broadway local bus or Skytrain-to- Commercial Dr bus. A lot of people using the Millennium line today who have to transfer to a Broadway bus at Broadway @ Commercial will discover its easier & quicker to stay on the Millennium train and use one of the new stops closer to their destination.

With the connection from the new Millennium line to the Canada Line at City Hall, some Skytrain riders will use this transfer point to get to the Airport, Richmond, South Vancouver or as an alternate way to get downtown instead of using the Expo line.